{"id":579153,"date":"2026-08-24T20:42:10","date_gmt":"2026-08-24T20:42:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/579153\/"},"modified":"2026-08-24T20:42:10","modified_gmt":"2026-08-24T20:42:10","slug":"hal-williams-starred-in-the-80s-sitcom-remake-of-a-classic-goldie-hawn-movie","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/579153\/","title":{"rendered":"Hal Williams Starred In The ’80s Sitcom Remake Of A Classic Goldie Hawn Movie"},"content":{"rendered":"


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Monica Morgan\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

Hal Williams had a pivotal role as\u00a0Sgt. L.C. “Ted” Ross on the CBS series “Private Benjamin,” and he also appeared in the classic 1980 film of the same name starring Goldie Hawn.\u00a0The three-season sitcom concluded its run in 1983, just two years before the late actor would star as beloved family patriarch Lester Jenkins on “227.”<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\n

In a 2024 interview<\/a> with “The Waltons” star Judy Norton, Williams revealed that the film’s casting team “didn’t want to bring me in” to play\u00a0the drill sergeant “but they brought me in” anyway. “Luckily, the day I came in for my audition, Goldie Hawn was there, and Goldie read with me,” he said. “Goldie had on some slacks and a blouse and a big gold belt and we did the scene where I threw her off the bus.”<\/p>\n

Williams noted that the cast and crew “spent eight wonderful, wonderful weeks in Fort MacArthur in San Pedro, California,” filming the movie.\u00a0“[I] just had a great time with Eileen and Goldie and everybody. … It was really the best fun I’ve had ever,” he added.<\/p>\n

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Williams openly discussed his challenging experience on the Private Benjamin series<\/p>\n


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MovieStillsDB<\/p>\n

Elsewhere in Hal Williams’ interview with Judy Norton<\/a>, the “Sanford and Son”\u00a0actor said he didn’t totally enjoy working on the\u00a0“Private Benjamin” series due to the changes new producers desired to implement.\u00a0“[It was] a lot of little things. …I was glad for the opportunity, and I made the best of it. It\u00a0wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t nearly as great as the movie,” he shared.<\/p>\n

Williams claimed that studio executives “came in and tried to change” and “diminish” his character. “They didn’t want me to be tight with Eileen [Brennan], who was a captain and defending Benjamin all the time. There was an episode that I almost got fired over because they wanted me to say some things that I had never done before,” he explained.<\/p>\n

“One of the executives at Warner Bros. [said], ‘Hal, you’re gonna say that line.’ I say, ‘I’m not gonna say that line.’ Why would I? I’ve never talked to her that way,” he continued. “They call my agent. They threaten me with all kinds of stuff. They modified it somewhat, but they were ready to fire me over that because they didn’t want to listen to what the show had been up to that point.”<\/p>\n

Afterward, he continued having a steady acting career until 2025, just one year before Hal Williams died in July 2026<\/a> at age 91.<\/p>\n


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